How Could You? Hall of Shame- Xavier Brothers-Bartholomew case- Child Death UPDATED

This will be an archive of heinous actions by those involved in child welfare, foster care and adoption. We forewarn you that these are deeply disturbing stories that may involve sex abuse, murder, kidnapping and other horrendous actions.

From Cleveland, Ohio, 10-year-old Special Needs Foster Child Xavier Brothers-Bartholomew “was found in full arrest when EMS crews responded .” “The boy was taken to Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

A person within the Department of Child and Family Services told News Channel 5 Brothers-Bartholomew was receiving specialized foster care and was from another county in Eastern Ohio.

Neighbors say the woman who lives in the house has three daughters and occasionally fosters other children.

Investigators and officers came and went inside the home into the evening hours with the woman identified as the care-giver eventually leaving after investigators departed.

Police say the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner is expected to officially release cause of death.”

Investigators looking into death of special needs foster child
[New Net 5 1/4/15 by Nick Foley]

“The 10-year-old boy whose Sunday death here is under police investigation was a victim in a 2012 child neglect case in Erie County that started after his 1-year-old brother starved to death.

Cleveland paramedics found Xavier J. Brothers-Bartholomew in full cardiac arrest at his foster home on East 160th Street Sunday afternoon. He was driven to University Hospitals Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.

Cleveland police homicide detectives are investigating Xavier’s death, as is standard with most child deaths in the city. An initial police report indicates the death might be the result of natural causes.

A spokeswoman for the Cuyahoga County Department of Children and Family Services said the agency has no reason to suspect that neglect was a factor.

“If (Cleveland police) thought there was any concern of abuse or neglect in that home, they would have called us immediately,” Mary Louise Madigan said. “And they did not.”

Cleveland police did not immediately return a request for comment.

Xavier was placed in foster care in 2012 after he and five siblings were removed from the Vermilion home of his parents, who are now serving prison sentences, Erie County Deputy Sheriff Jared Oliver said.

“It was one of the worst cases we’ve ever seen,” Oliver, who led the investigation, said.

The case started in November 2012 after one of Xavier’s brothers, who was 11 years old at the time, found 1-year-old Isaac Brothers-Bartholomew dead in his crib.

The boy died as a result of malnutrition, the Erie County Medical Examiner’s office said.

Sheriff’s deputies immediately launched an investigation and removed Xavier and five siblings from the home of James Brothers and Adrienne Bartholomew. Oliver said the children appeared malnourished, and several were ultimately hospitalized.

The children suffer from hypertonia, which results in difficulty swallowing food, Erie County Prosecutor Kevin Baxter said.

Erie County Job and Family Services took custody of the children and placed them each into foster care, Oliver said.

Cuyahoga County Department of Child and Family Services was not involved in Xavier’s placement, Madigan said.

Brothers and Bartholomew were indicted on manslaughter and felony child endangering charges in January 2013. They eventually pleaded guilty to two counts of child endangering, and were each sentenced to five years in prison and one year in jail.

The children’s grandmother, Debra Nelson, was a home care nurse for Isaac and some of the other siblings. She was sentenced to two years in prison.

Isaac’s estate sued Nelson, the parents, several county social service agencies and the family’s pediatrician for failing to intervene and prevent his death.

Oliver said his office was notified of Xavier’s death Monday morning, and is ready to help Cleveland police investigators if they seek it.

The Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner’s office has not yet determined what caused the boy’s death.”

Cleveland boy who died Sunday was rescued from Vermilion home in 2012[Cleveland 1/5/15  by Cory Shaffer]

REFORM Puzzle Piece

 

Update:”Medical professionals determined a 10-year-old boy — who is also the brother to a toddler who starved to death more than two years ago — died as a result of his deteriorating genetic disorder.

Earlier this week, local officials told the Register that Xavier Brothers-Bartholomew died in his Cleveland foster care home on Sunday.

Xavier suffered a full cardiac arrest, but his heart wasn’t the main reason for his death.

“His heart did stop, but it appeared that his health was declining because of his condition,” said Karen Balconi Ghezzi, executive director at Erie County Job and Family Services. “They confirmed (Xavier) was being very well taken care of.”

Erie County officials arranged a small and private funeral for Xavier on Friday.

Xavier is the second of seven children James Brothers and Adrienne Bartholomew to die.

In 2013, Brothers and Bartholomew pleaded guilty to two counts of felonious child endangering and three counts of misdemeanor child endangering in connection with the Nov. 6, 2012, death of their son, Isaac Brothers-Bartholomew, 18 months old. Isaac died in the family’s Vermilion Township home.

Later on in 2013, a judge sentenced Brothers to six years in jail and prison. Bartholomew, meanwhile, received a three-year sentence in jail and prison.

Authorities attributed Isaac’s death to him being malnourished. He weighed just 12 pounds, about half the typical weight of a child his age.

The couple’s co-defendant, Deborah Nelson — the children’s grandmother and home healthcare nurse — previously pleaded guilty to similar charges in the case and received a two-year prison sentence.

Several of the five living siblings — today, they’re anywhere between 4 to young teenagers — also suffer from a rare genetic disorder that affects their ability to retain healthy fat deposits, most likely contributing to Xavier’s death.

Each of the five surviving children today remain in foster care systems, regularly supervised by Erie County children services workers. In fact, a caseworker visited with Xavier as recent as Friday.”

Boy dies from genetic disorder[Sandusky Register 1/7/15 by Andy Ouriel]

Update 2: “An Ohio medical examiner says the death of a 10-year-old disabled boy at a foster home in January was an accident.

A spokesman says the Cuyahoga County medical examiner has ruled that Xavier Brothers-Bartholomew died of positional asphyxiation on Jan. 4 at a home in Cleveland. The boy, who had a genetic disorder that left him physically and mentally impaired, was found in full cardiac arrest.

Xavier and his five siblings were sent to foster homes in November 2012 after their 18-month-old brother, Isaac, was found dead in his crib at the family’s home near Vermilion, west of Cleveland.

Authorities say Isaac died of malnourishment and that his siblings were neglected. The children’s parents and their paternal grandmother pleaded guilty to child endangering charges and were sentenced to prison.”

Ohio coroner: Disabled boy’s death in foster care accidental[Ohio.com 5/19/15 by Associated Press]